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Above: an image from The Invisibles. The character in the center
wearing a
suit is King Mob, the character from Invisibles that Morrison
identified
himself with. Below: a photograph of Grant Morrison fromhis web
site.
There has been extended internet-drama on occult sites regarding
what
does and does not count as a hypersigil. I think Morrison is
clear that the
hypersigil takes the form of a serial narrative whether that be
a comic
series, a movie trilogy, a series of songs or albums, or what
have you. But
others have made a compelling argument that the definition
neednt be so
limited. Nick Pell, in his essay Beyond the Sigil: Creating YR
own Mind
Viruses in Magic on the Edge, makes a compelling case for this,
using
Shepard Fairleys Andre the Giant has a Posse and Obey Giant
campaigns as examples of other types of extended, non-static
sigils.
However, for purposes of this essay, Im only going to consider
hypersigils
as narrative works- but I do want to consider narrative beyond
strictly
fictional narratives. For example, one can create a narrative in
a personal
blog or Live Journal or their Twitter or Facebook updates.
After suggesting a connection between hypersigils and
cybernetics, Nabil
replied:
The number of ways that hypersigilism applies to the
internet/cybernetics is kind of staggering when you think on
it.
[1]
Think about something as basic as a myspace/facebook
profile, the choices we make defining the online persona [2]
which creates a manifest change in the offline world. [ 3].
The things we choose to place on the internet reflect and
http://twitter.com/Nadreck/status/9259626410http://twitter.com/Nadreck/status/9259610288http://twitter.com/Nadreck/status/9259575867http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shepard_Faireyhttp://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1905713053?ie=UTF8&tag=technoccult-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1905713053http://grantmorrison.com/
8/3/2019 27087555 Technoccult Net Hypersigils Reconsidered
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magnify the awareness of self to ourselves and those around
us. [4]
Above: a diagram I made illustrating feedback loops of
perception in
hypersigils
The way I see it, the online persona, fictional self, or avatar
one creates can
create feedback loops to reinforce behaviors and perceptions and
have a
create significant real world changes in a persons life over
time. In the
case of Grant Morrison, he was also shaping his persona in the
letters
column of The Invisibles, in interviews he gave, and his public
persona at
comic conventions.
Nabil says: I know of one person who used net-anonymity to
explore
gender before pursuing changing gender IRL. [source]. I suspect
thats
rather common. Also, to go back to my interview with Amber from
last
week, in which she gives advice to liberal arts majors looking
to establish a
career outside academia:
Create an online presence that is ubiquitous and enjoyable
to
interface with. Let it be known who you want to be. Put that
on
your business card and on your social profiles.
Which, of course, is exactly how she came to be a cyborg
anthropologist.
So I find myself wondering: what is and i snt hypersigilic
activity online (and
off?) Is creating an avatar on an MMORG? If so, what about
playing a
character in a pen and paper role playing ga me?
I think it depends on the role of online and offline feedback
involved if
playing a character (online or off) changes the way you think of
yourself and
*especially* if changes the way OTHER people think about you,
then yes I
think it does.
*There was some discussions on cybernetics and complex adaptive
systems
and the occult at Esozone: The Other Tomorrow lead by Joseph
Thiebes,
deadletter b, Wes Unruh, and Edward Wilson but I missed them. I
suspect
the overlaps have been di scussed elsewhere, if the curious
reader wishes
to look.
See Also:
The Other Tomorrow Manifesto
Hypersigil, Hyperstition, or Simply Interesting Living?
Related posts (autogenerated):
1. Lost and the Supercontext
2. Grant Morrison documentary due by next year s Comic-Con
International
3. The Lost Issue of Doom Patrol
4. Interviews and articles what would you like to see?
5. Icelands currency stays afloat online
Posted by Klint Finley
TAGGED:Amber Case, Comic Books, cybernetics, cyborg, Grant
Morrison, hypersigil, Occult, Superstition, systems
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